XTRATUF

Before I moved to Kodiak, I had never heard of the word "XTRATUF." When I first saw it written, I thought it was an egregious spelling error. Now the word is a part of my everyday vocabulary, and I think of Xtratuf boots as a totally legitimate, year-round, all-purpose footwear option. 

These boots are such a part of Kodiak's culture that the theme of

Crab Fest last year was "Xtratuf Small Town." The boots themselves are an emblem of the informal and egalitarian values of our community, as they are worn by everyone from hard-working local fishermen to immigrant cannery workers to teachers to doctors. Xtratufs are worn to the grocery store, to the beach, to church, and to work. They are worn with fishing gear, with workout clothes, with church clothes, with work clothes. And they are worn by young and old. 

Now they are worn by my two-year-old daughter, who got her first pair about a week ago. She was delighted when she realized that the boots allowed her to splash in deep puddles and even stand in the ocean like Daddy can. I was delighted watching my child--born in Maryland but for all intents and purposes an "Alaska baby"--enjoy her new boots. 

I know there are things that Rainbow is missing out on by growing up here. We don't have a children's museum, or a zoo, or a water park. We don't have a Waldorf school, or a Montessori school, or a foreign language immersion school. We only have one stop light, one move theater, one high school. But we have eagles, and sea lions, and otters, and starfish, and sea anemones. We have tide pools and lakes and rivers. We have forests and beaches and mountains. And we have our Xtratuf boots that help us keep our feet dry and warm as we explore that great outdoors.